Mária Švarbová

is a self-taught photographer and art director based in Bratislava Slovakia. With degrees in art conservation, restoration and archeology Maria found her self instead drawn to the medium of Photography.

Mária’s early work focused on surrealist portraiture with strong Art Nouveau themes, and was a reflection on her background and interest in art history. In 2013 Mária transitioned to more ethereal themes with works such as "Forgotten" or "God’s Mirror" that reflect her desire to create a dreamlike narrative of individuals lost in a greater force.

Mária is the laureate of several photography awards, including the Gold medal for Excellence at the Trierenberg Super Circuit photography fair in Austria. Her work attracted features in Vogue, Forbes, the Guardian and collaborations, among others, with DODHO and FotoVideo. Her reputation also earned her a commission for a promo on the massive Taipei 101 tower in Taiwan.

In her more recent works “Plastic World” (2014) she takes a distinctive approach to aesthetic minimalism and purity. Inspired by the historic artifacts and environments of Communist Czechoslovakia Mária presents an imaginary dehumanized world that features every day situations.

Using a limited subdued palette of colors, she focuses on the narrative. Each frame within the series is meticulous arranged and the models are carefully chosen to reflect the mood and sensation that she tries to evoke. Both complex and evocative, Mária’s work challenges the roles that humans play in society and ask the viewer to reflect on their own individual role in society.

Photographs of her most recent and most expansive series "Swimming Pool" evoke the 60s fashion and esthetics- through the depicted architecture, fashion, and colors. Featuring mid-movement figures in almost frozen compositions enclosed in minimalist, almost sterile utilitarian pools built during the socialist era in Slovakia, they have dream-like quality. Their appeal is immediate: whether it's their cinematographic quality, soft retro colors or detachment and stillness.